Islam and Productivity

1.) “I asked Allah’s Messenger  which deed was best.” He (the Holy Prophet) replied: “The prayer at its appointed hour”. [Sahih Muslim]

2.) “If you want to focus more on Allah in your prayers, focus more on Him outside your prayers.” Yasmin Mogahed

3.) The Prophet  used to seek refuge in Allah  from laziness that he used to mention it daily in this dua: “O Allah, I take refuge in You from anxiety and sorrow, weakness and laziness, miserliness and cowardice, the burden of debts and from being over powered by men.” [Sahih Bukhari]

4.) The Prophet  said, “By Him in Whose Hand my life is, it is better for anyone of you to take a rope and cut the wood (from the forest) and carry it over his back and sell it (as a means of earning his living) rather than to ask a person for something and that person may give him or not.” [Sahih Bukhari]

5.) One of the greatest pieces of advice given by the Prophet  was: “The most beloved actions to Allah are those performed consistently, even if they are few.” [Sahih Bukhari]

6.) “And whoever fears Allah – He will make for him a way out and will provide for him from where he does not expect. And whoever relies upon Allah – then He is sufficient for him. Indeed, Allah will accomplish His purpose. Allah has already set for everything a [decreed] extent.” [Qur’an, 65: 2-3]

Get Motivated

7.) “Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” [Qur’an, 13:11]

8.) “After asking Allah to guide you to the straight path, don’t just stand there … start walking!” – Albaz Poetry

9.) “Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” – Rumi

10.) “The capacity to learn is a gift; the ability to learn is a skill; the willingness to learn is a choice.” Via Islamic Thoughts

11.) “Allah knows exactly what to give you to help you return to Him. The events in your life are purposeful, appropriate & non-random.” – Shaykh Hamza Yusuf

12.) “My sin burdened me heavily. But when I measured it against Your Grace, O Lord, Your forgiveness came out greater.” – Imam Shafii

13.) (Ibn al-Jawzi) To achieve any objective, we need two things:

1. Nobel himma (motivation) – will overcome the obstruction
2. Right strategy.

14.) “O my Lord! Open for me my chest (grant me self-confidence, contentment, and boldness).” [Qur’an, 20:25]

15.) “And if there comes to you from Satan an evil suggestion, then seek refuge in Allah. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Knowing.” [Qur’an, 41:36]

16.) “And whoever fears Allah – He will make for him a way out and will provide for him from where he does not expect. And whoever relies upon Allah – then He is sufficient for him. Indeed, Allah will accomplish His purpose. Allah has already set for everything a [decreed] extent.” [Qur’an, 65: 2-3]

17.) “Strange are the matters of believers. For him there is good in all his affairs, and this is so only for the believer. When something pleasing happens to him, he is grateful (shukr), and that is good for him; and when something displeasing happens to him he is enduring patience (sabr) and that is good for him.” [Sahih Muslim]

Feel Better

18.) Abu Yahya Suhaib b. Sinan said that the Prophet  said: “No man fills a container worse than his stomach. A few morsels that keep his back upright are sufficient for him. If he has to, then he should keep one-third for food, one-third for drink and one-third for breathing.” [At-Tirmidhi]

19.) Anas reported that the Prophet  said, “It a Muslim plants a tree or sows seeds, and then a bird, or a person or an animal eats from it, it is regarded as a charitable gift (sadaqah) for him.” [Sahih Bukhari]

Work Better

20.) “There are two blessings which many people lose: (They are) health and free time for doing good.” [Sahih Bukhari]

21.) The Prophet  said:

“Take benefit of five before five:
Your youth before your old age,
Your health before your sickness,
Your wealth before your poverty,
Your free-time before your preoccupation and
Your life before your death.”
[Mustadrak Al-Haakim]

22.) “If you are grateful, I shall certainly give you increase” [Qur’an, 14:7]

23.) “Actions are by their intentions” [Sahih Bukhari and Muslim]

24.) “Then when you have taken a decision, put your trust in Allah.” [Qur’an, 3:159]

Help Others

25.) “None of you truly believes (in Allah and His religion) until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.” [Sahih Bukhari and Muslim]

26.) “Meet the people in such a manner that if you die, they should weep for you, and if you live, they should long for you.” – Ali Ibn Abi Talib 

27.) “If Allah puts anyone in the position of authority over the Muslims’ affairs and he secludes himself (from them), not fulfilling their needs, wants, and poverty, Allah will keep Himself away from him, not fulfilling his need, want, and poverty.” [Abu Dawud]

28.) The Prophet  said, “If anyone fulfills his brother’s needs, Allah will fulfill his needs; if one relieves a Muslim of his troubles, Allah will relieve his troubles on the Day of Resurrection.” [Sahih Bukhari and Muslim]

29.) Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas  reported that the Prophet  said, “The believer is not he who eats his fill while his neighbor is hungry.” (Authenticated by Al-Albani, Al-Adab Al-Mufrad Al-Bukhari, Hadith 112)

30.) The Prophet  said: “It is also charity to utter a good word.” [Sahih Bukhari and Muslim]